I've made the decision to step away from public education advocacy...
After four years of almost full-time focus on what's been happening in Seattle and nationally...
I like to think that I've had some small effect in slowing down the implementation of the ed deform agenda - at the very least, in WITNESSING it, declaring to the oligarchs: "I know what you're doing, it's not OK and you're not doing it in my name - or my son's!"
I'm driven by a sense of urgency not many other people have...
And I've been pushing and pushing against ed deform, pushing for people, especially teachers to wake up, stand up, step up, break free...
here: MiseducationNation
and here: Which Side Are You On?
and on Twitter and all over the web and at rallies and school board meetings and in newspapers...
got lots of defensiveness back from both parents and teachers, coming out of fear I know...
I'm
having trouble dealing with my frustration at what I see as teachers'
reluctance to accept the reality, the urgency and to step up and do what's required to effectively push back
against ed deform...
Ed deform hurts children, abuses children, stunts their beings, uses them as cash cows...
And from my perspective, teachers, by continuing to implement ed deform, are complicit in that child abuse...
AND I do appreciate what it is they especially have to lose if they get serious about standing in front of the bulldozer of the corporate rape and pillaging of public education...
AND at some point, we each have to say "I'm as mad as hell and I'm not going to take it any more"...
I can't keep working in this arena with this degree of frustration, so I'm stepping away...
I have taken the boy out of the education system altogether and we shall focus on educating for and living life in as wholistic a fashion as we can possibly manage...
I wish we could do that for, and with, all children...
I have taken the boy out of the education system altogether and we shall focus on educating for and living life in as wholistic a fashion as we can possibly manage...
I wish we could do that for, and with, all children...
And so, we go on...
Posts
This is the "goodbye' post I wrote on MiseducationNation the public education advocacy page I have been maintaining for the past two years...
ReplyDelete******* I've made a decision to step away from public education advocacy...
I am having trouble dealing with my frustration at what I see as teachers' reluctance to step up and do what's required to effectively push back against ed deform...
I am driven by a sense of urgency not many other people have...
I can't keep working in this arena with this degree of frustration, so I'm stepping away.
I have taken my son out of the education system altogether and we shall focus on educating for and living life in as wholistic a fashion as we can possibly manage...
I wish we could do that for and with all children...
I have offered the page back to TFT and he has agreed to take it back, rather than put it out for someone else to admin, or to close it down.
I wish you all well, and thank you for your indulgence over this past two years...
Namaste
Sahila ChangeBringer *************
and these are the comments that came back from some of the 1300 people who "like" the page:
ReplyDeleteDS: Best wishes to you and your son.
CP: Good luck and thank you.
KP: I'm sorry to hear that. I often reposted your material for the group members of "North Carolina Teachers for Change" to read.
FM: Thank you for all you have done...and best wishes. As a former teacher who was also baffled by the complacency of many of my colleagues, I do understand your frustration.
TM: Good luck and thank you for your passion.
J S-P: Thanks for what you have already done. I understand your own frustration with getting others to do something about what is happening. I am a public ed teacher right now but was in private schools and homeschooling previously for many years. You are right that teachers must get involved in ed reform movements. We need real knowledgeable people making decisions about our children's education.
NH: Yes, it is frustrating. I wish we could help every child. Take care of your son. Thank you.
H MF: Darn...I just found your page a couple of months ago. I completely get what you are saying. Sometimes the best course of action involves looking inward instead outward. I have moments like yours myself, but I haven't quite gotten there yet. I wish you and your family all the best.
M MS: I just found you also and have been sharing w/ Kim Parker on the teacher's page and on my timeline! Your insight is wonderful. Best wishes to you and your son. There are more teachers out there trying to step up and make a change; however, they too are afraid for their jobs(which shouldn't be the case!)
Me: wow - lovely words... thank you... friend me if you want to stay in touch - everything/everyone is connected/interlinked in the web of life!
LD: You will be missed. Good luck to you and the boy. :-)
JL: Sahila, Truly, I am sorry to see you go. I enjoyed reading your posts and, even though many times we found ourselves on different sides of an issue, I continue to respect your passion for children and their education. I wish you and your son the very best. Jack
KP: I can't believe it. I hope you'll take a break and come back to join the fight when you feel the time is right. I think eyes may open inNYS as the new APPR kicks in next year. Mustn't lose hope. Best to you and your son.
SK D: Understand and all the best. Your posts are informative and inspirational.
H S-MP: I wish you and your family all the happiness life will bring! Peace and I hope you will return to the cause! We need people like you!
J TM: Thank you for all that you have done. For those of us who fight and have teachers around us act as if they are ostriches with their heads in the sand it is completely and utterly frustrating. I hope that you will continue to keep watch on what is happening because there are many of us who do care and we will be waiting for your vocal return to the cause. Take care and thanks for everything.
LD: Here's to the Crazy Ones -- Here's To The Crazy Ones
Me: PARTING GIFT... a quote that just popped up on my own FB feed:
ReplyDelete"For what it’s worth: it’s never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be. There’s no time limit, stop whenever you want. You can change or stay the same, there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. And I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you’re proud of. If you find that you’re not, I hope you have the strength to start all over again. "
~ "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
Me: thank you so much for the lovely, lovely thoughts/words you have written.... very heartwarming and uplifting for me and they take some of the sting out of having to make and follow through on this choice.... I'll be around, doing what I do.... just take care of yourselves, be wise and kind to yourselves, LOVE yourselves (cos then the world will be loving itself and all will change bit by bit)..... Namaste
B PB: I will miss your posts!!! I hope you change your mind, but will understand, if you don't. Wishing you well!
WM: I will miss your posts. I share them on the local teachers union's Facebook page as I am the president. I feel your frustration that teachers are not getting it--there is a war on public education and it is the teachers' duty to fight for the students and do what is right. But, my teachers are so tired and beat up that they don't have much to give. I will not back down and continue to educate them anyway I can. I just need them to act..... Take care and thank you for all you gave!
ReplyDeleteMM: Thank you for the love and energy you have brought to the conversation. I have felt the same way. There are many other areas you can send your energy to, like autonomous communities, economic justice and holistic education done on an informal way. You can be a role model for others to create their own education and thrive.
Me: @WM - Wendy Marczak oh dear... I kinda feel bad running out on you and your teachers.... and I do get how tired and worn out they are... and its just living it, day by day - you know? I know you know... I'm not finishing up because I dont have the energy for it - I've finishing because my frustration is becoming toxic and I'm feeling resentful and I cant be empathic and compassionate any more.... and life is too short for me to spend so many hours feeling that way... and I have a son I have to build a new life for/with, seeing we have to stay in this country..... so...... thank you for all you do; I am sorry if it feels like I'm pulling one of your supports/resources out from under you; AND what will be, will be.... someone posted this on my wall a little while ago, saying that whenever it got rough and tough in her life, the corniness of this always cheered her up: It will be OK in the end, if it's not OK, it's not the end!
C CW:Thanks for all the information and passion you've shared in the past. I totally understand your frustration and need to remove yourself from it. I retired a year early as a public school teacher and union activist for similar reasons. It is very hard to know what should be done and see such apathy and acceptance among those who are being oppressed. Good luck in your future endeavors. I will truly miss your posts and current topics/news in education.
LB: Thank you for your passion and dedication. I have found your posts informative and inspirational and have shared many on the teacher group walls I belong to -- and also on the opposition's walls as well. I, too, hope you will take a much deserved break and return at some point. All the best to you and your son.
DW: Sahila, it sounds like you have for done much for so many. and even tho.ive done not much as far as helping manyand chitd or
N HJ: Best wishes to you and your son, Sahila. I join the many who will miss your passionate posting!!! I've shared so many of your posts, especially lately. You will be missed. I hope you can take a break, refill your tanks and rejoin the effort to resist and fight the corporate takeover! ♥
DH: So happy to read all the well deserved notes of appreciation and good wishes for the unforgettable Sahilia!
DW: i love your passion and willingness to take your child out of this no win system and your own child will.benefit far more wisdom and knowledge with a father And a person with so much will. he's a very fortunate child. blessings to you both and stay safe and strong.
EK: Best of luck and thank you for all you have done. I understand what you and doing and why. Please don't give up on the rest of the kids...
ReplyDeleteC TK: I'm sorry to hear that Sahila. I hope you change your mind at some point. We need all the advocates we can get! And vocal ones are good!
JE: I will miss your input and hope that people will begin to put forth the effort that is needed to protect education. We are all being infiltrated by greed.
K P-L: I as well will miss your posts! I do believe that there is a growing, quietly simmering anger among my fellow public schoolteachers. There is also a lot of fear. I have hopes for the future of public education, and we'll be there to clean up the mess after the special interest, money-seeking, private corporations move on...
TH: I've taught in public school for 6 years, this upcoming year being my first year out. I don't think the schools or even teachers necessarily are to blame. Those that I have worked with worked extraordinarily hard. I think it is a larger, cultural issue. That said, I have also pulled my children from public schools, and continue to work as hard as I can through TeachThought and other outlets to provide opportunities for existing educators to improve, and to provide alternative learning models for others so that affordable options to public schooling exist. Best of luck!
LM: Just know that some of us have disseminated your information to effect.
TFT: I don't think Sahila should go, and she hasn't gone, yet. Perhaps she is reconsidering.
ReplyDeleteMe: Sahila has been coming back to thank people for the lovely, kind, caring thoughts they've been expressing; Sahila has thought about it overnight and during today, while she's been experiencing journalistic withdrawal symptoms! and she realises these facts:
She had made public ed advocacy and maintaining this page her full time (unpaid) job
Its very gratifying to know that her efforts have not gone un-noticed and have been of use to some people
She needs to do something that brings in money so that she can provide a home for her boy and the cats, gather her possessions together in one place and settle, now that she has to stay in this country (cant stay homeless, living on $350/mth child support and $270/mth in foodstamps forever - though that might be the way of the future for millions more of us)
Not having income and a home is stressful
Feeling so frustrated and resentful about the general apathy/slow response towards what's happening in ed reform/the larger world eats into her ability to feel empathy/compassion, is very toxic and adds to the stress load
She cannot switch her emotional response on/off and the energy drain of that response is having a negative impact in other areas of her life where she needs to apply energy, focus, motivation, determination and drive....
So, she EITHER has to find a way to make some money doing this (so she doesnt have to look elsewhere for income producing activity) AND to alter her emotional response from one of overwhelming frustration OR she has to walk away...
Since she hasnt found a way to be a paid public ed advocate (and since a series of surgeries a couple of years ago she doesnt have the energy to work a job AND do public ed advocacy), or to alter her response, then the only way forward she can see, is to move on to other things that will provide at least some nourishment - both material and personal/emotional/spiritual...
If anyone has another perspective/idea on how she can make this work, then she's all ears....... otherwise, while it makes here really sad, she's gotta move on....
One of the things that is kinda hard to process is that I have been asking for donations both here and on MiseducationNation - 50 people a month, giving just a one-off $20 donation over the year, would have been enough to keep me and the boy housed for the year...
ReplyDeleteMisEducation Nation has 1300 "likers" with those numbers continuing to grow, so those people would only have had to give $27 once in three years to keep me financially viable....
Was what I was producing/offering worth $27 once in every three years, to each of those 1300 people, to the larger world?
It's bitter sweet now, having lots of people on the page, talking about how much the effort I put in made a difference, how they spread what I posted to other arenas and how much they value my passion and voice, how much they will miss it etc, when no one translated that appreciation for the value of the work into such a small donation...
How are we going to move forward as a world, if this doesn't change?
QUESTION IS...
ReplyDeleteDo I have the guts to post my comment about donations on the MisEducation Nation page?
Or would that just be a whiney, 'poor me', guilt-tripping, 'leave-a-bad-taste-in-the-mouth' thing to do?
Hmmmmmm.....